Me? Strange?

I would have figured anyone reading my blog would have reached that conclusion long ago. I wouldn’t say ‘strange’ so much as ‘different’. Okay, maybe strange works just as well. I have a dark streak, a warped sense of humor, and a skewed way of looking at things. Personally, I don’t think that makes me a bad person, though I’m sure there are a few people out there who might hold differing opinions. Oh, yeah, and I don’t give a damn what people think of me. Including the many strangers I held up when I parked my car sideways in the middle of a busy road in Paramus the other day, blocking traffic in both directions so I could herd a garbage-lid sized snapping turtle safely through the traffic he’d happily wandered directly into. A massive snapping turtle is a creature to be reckoned with, and he ambled along with that attitude, but I suspect if it came down to turtle vs inattentive Escalade driver, the Caddy would have won. So yes, that was me, standing in the road just clear of any retaliatory snaps as I waved my arms and shouted “Get out of the road!” while my fellow drivers, unable to pass, likely were yelling the same at me. And more, I suspect.

Well I’m right with you there. My husband before he passed was driving down the road in Central Florida when he did a complete U Turn on a small 2 lane street to save a Gopher Turtle from becoming one with the road in a bad way. Here we are in a bright red Ford Dully our company graphics all over and pulling a trailer with marine equipment on it. Hitting the breaks and turning so fast I was holding on for dear life. Praying no one hits our trailer or us. He stops the truck in the middle of the road snatches up the turtle and throws him in the back of the truck. (At the time he didn’t know what kind of Turtle it was) Endangered species sitting in the back of our truck safe and sound until we got to our families house and released him.

It’s surprising how many turtles I’ve rescued along these New Jersey roads over the years, though this snapping turtle was by far the biggest. Years ago I scooped one up with a fishing net I had in the back of my truck, but that was just a little guy, about 10 inches, and he still made it clear he didn’t appreciate my assistance. This one the other day was the biggest I’ve ever seen… I wish I’d taken a moment to snap a picture, but I was more concerned with getting both of us clear of traffic. By size, that turtle must have lived for many years, and I wanted to see that continue. And judging by some of the creatures I see that don’t survive crossing the asphalt, I sometimes wonder whether drivers are that careless, which is just plain sad, or deliberately aim for them, which is even more distressing.

“A mystery in the John D. MacDonald tradition – both in its largely watery setting and tone, the novel also brings to mind Dashiell Hammett in the complexity of its plot, and even Stieg Larsson in its use of a strong young woman with an attitude as a main character. Last Exit In New Jersey is well-paced, densely-plotted story that mystery-thriller fans will enjoy immensely.”
~ Alex Austin, author of The Red Album of Asbury Park Remixed

Hazel Moran, the tough truck-driving amateur sleuth introduced in Last Exit in New Jersey, returns in this dark and twisting sequel.